CFI is a precursor to Prime Minister Julia Gillard's proposed tax on carbon emissions, which is set to go into effect starting July 2012. The carbon tax will initially apply only to Australia's largest industrial emitters — the agricultural sector is excluded, but CFI will enable farmers and foresters to earn money from planting trees, reducing the use of fire and fertilizer, and cutting emissions from livestock. Offsets generated by these activities can be purchased by companies affected by the carbon tax, reducing their effective tax burden.

CORRECTION: The original version of this post stated: "Australian companies can also buy offsets from overseas activities, including certified Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) projects in tropical countries, provided these foreign credits amount to no more than half their total offsets." Upon further review of the CFI, this does not appear to be the case. We apologize for the error.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions generated from mongabay.com operations (server, data transfer, travel) are mitigated through an association with Anthrotect,
an organization working with Afro-indigenous and Embera communities to protect forests in Colombia's Darien region.
Anthrotect is protecting the habitat of mongabay's mascot: the scale-crested pygmy tyrant.